RIP Mister Bland. Mr. Voice. I had the great fortune of hearing him once at a blues fest in Toronto years ago. There were some great performances that day. Buddy Guy & Junior Wells, James Cotton. The Johnny Otis Revue, Harvey Mandel, Roy Buchanan . We played last. man, I was intimidated by these cats. Bobby Bland and Roy stood out the most for me. Good times

I was lucky to see him perform several times over a number of years. One of the best shows was an outdoor venue in Ohio where he and Ray Charles were billed back-to-back and performed a song or two together.

I have loved his records since the late fifties. Marvellous to see him in Hammersmith (London) in the early eighties. He was never as universally popular as others in the soul/blues style, but certainly deserved to be.